“Tom’s part is the showcase part. You get to say ‘cunt’ and you get to cry at your daddy’s bedside and get redeemed at the end.”

Paul Thomas Anderson there, underplaying just how good a role “master of the muffin” Frank TJ Mackey is and how good Tom Cruise is in it.

Flinging himself down the autobiog throughlines to his own Oedipal psychescars and fractious relationship with the press, Cruise shows us the megawatt charisma.

It’s dazzling. Then he shows us the sickness behind the smile. It’s electrifying. Respect the cock.

Greatest Moment: “What am I doing? I’m quietly judging you.”

Also See: Charlie Babbitt (Rain Man), Ron Kovic (Born On The 4th Of July).